Nitish Katara murder: SC orders release of convict

Noting that he has already completed his sentence of 20-year imprisonment, the Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the release of Sukhdev Yadav, alias Pehalwan, a convict in the 2002 Nitish Katara murder case.

Expressing surprise over the Sentence Review Board (SRB) decision to reject Yadav’s remission plea citing his conduct, a Bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice KV Viswanathan wondered how the SRB could sit over an order passed by the top court?

“How can the Sentence Review Board sit over an order of a judicial authority? If this is the approach, then every convict will die in jail. Is this the conduct of an executive?” the Bench asked and noted that Yadav should have been released after the completion of his 20-year prison sentence.

On behalf of the Delhi Government, Additional Solicitor General Archana Pathak Dave said there can’t be an automatic release after 20 years and life imprisonment means jail till the remainder of natural life.

However, senior advocate Siddharth Mridul, representing the convict, said Yadav completed the sentence on March 9, 2025 and there was no lawful justification to detain him any further.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had on June 25 granted him a three-month furlough, typically granted to long-term inmates who have served a portion of their sentence.